V. I. Lenin

Telegram To J. V. Stalin

July 7, 1 a. m.

Tsaritsyn to People’s Commissar Stalin

Wired:3 July, 1918First Published:21 January, 1936 InPravdaNo. 21 Published according to the manuscriptSource:Lenin’sCollected Works, 4th English
      Edition, Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1972 Volume 27, page 523Translated:Clemens Dutt; Edited by Robert DaglishTranscription/HTML Markup:David Walters & Robert
      CymbalaOnline Version:Lenin Internet
	ArchiveMarch, 2002

Today at about three p. m. a Left
      Socialist-Revolutionary killed Mirbach with a bomb. This murder is
      obviously in the interests of the monarchists or Anglo-French
      capitalists. The Left S.R.s, not wanting to surrender the
      assassin, arrested Dzerzhinsky and Latsis and began an uprising
      against us. We are liquidating it mercilessly this very night and
      we shall tell the people the whole truth: we are a hair’s
      breadth from ’war. We have hundreds of Left S.R.s as
      hostages. Everywhere it is essential to crush mercilessly these
      pitiful and hysterical adventurers who have become tools in the
      hands of the counter-revolutionaries. All who are against war will
      be for us.

As regards Baku, the most important thing is that you should be
      continuously in contact with Shahumyan, and that Shahumyan
      should know of the Germans’ proposal, made to Ambassador
      Joffe in Berlin, to the effect that the Germans would agree to
      halt the Turks’ offensive against Baku if we guaranteed
      the Germans part of the oil. Of course, we shall agree. And so,
      be merciless against the Left S.R.s and report more frequently.